All of this depends on which college you attend.

But, in general:

-Most colleges do not allow pets in the dorms.

-Some colleges do allow fish only, and limit the size of the aquarium you can have.

-Most freshman dorms do not have a kitchen in the room/suite, but often have a kitchen down the hall or on another floor of the building. You can usually keep a minifridge and a microwave in your room. Some rooms have sinks.

-depending on the price of the college, whether it is public or private, and the city it is located in, either an apartment or a dorm might be cheaper. In NYC for example, student housing is much cheaper than buying or renting an apartment, but in a smaller city or at a more expensive college, an apartment may be cheaper.

-some colleges require students to live on campus (in a dorm) for a certain amount of time- could be a semester, could be a few years.

So, if you get a pet, make sure that your parents will be able to take care of it when you are in college.

In general, most schools don’t allow pets. Some allow fish, but there are a lot of issues involved, including both your potential roommate’s allergies and phobias. As to the difference between apartments and dorms, generally unless you will be over the age of 25 when you start college, they will require you to live in a dorm. The difference in cost depends upon real estate costs in the area in which you are in school; in some locations, apartments are cheaper (if you share with roommates, at least), but where I am, living off campus is so expensive that most students put it off as long as possible. Some suite-type dorms have kitchenettes, but not all dorms are configured that way, and as a freshman, you may not be given that choice.

most dorms do not allow animals at all because of safety, health, and building codes. some will allow you to have animals that do not have fur (ie fish, lizards, frogs, etc) because they do not carry fleas. i would not take a chance and purchase a pet right now only to have it turn out that you can’t take it along with you.

the rate on dorm prices vs. apts varies depending on your area. in california, it is much cheaper to live in the dorms because rents are so high in apartments. usually however, in the dorms, you have to purchase a meal plan to eat in the cafeteria which can be pricey.

dorm rooms usually do not have kitchenettes/kitchens however the building/suite usually has a communal kitchen with a fridge, stove, etc for everyone to use.

Just an FYI most effective the Air Force has dorms! Navy has barracks and a PPV that’s a public/personal enterprise. Depending on wherein you’re stationed and wherein housing is to be had on base you may also success out or you will get the fast finish of the stick. Anywho well success and spot ya within the fleet!